In his new book, Joyful Wisdom, Yongey Mingyur shows us how to discover the joy and awareness that are never affected by life’s ups and downs. We Always Have Joy

When I’m teaching in front of large groups, I often confront a rather embarrassing problem. My throat gets dry as I talk, so I tend to drain my glass of water pretty early on in the teaching session. Invariably, people notice that my glass is empty and they very kindly refill it. As I continue to speak, my throat gets dry, I drink the en- tire glass of water, and sooner or later, someone refills my ph o t

glass again. I go on talking or answering questions, and o by bill r again someone refills my glass. After some time—usually before the teaching period is scheduled to end—I become aware of a rather uncom- athje fortable feeling, and a thought crosses my mind: Oh dear, there’s an hour left for this session and I have to pee. I talk a little bit more, answer some questions, and glance at my watch. Now there’s forty-five minutes left and I really have to pee. Half an hour passes and the urge to pee really becomes intense. Someone raises his hand and asks, “What is the difference between pure awareness and conditioned awareness?” The question goes to the heart of the Buddha’s teaching about the third noble truth. Often translated as “the truth of cessation,” this third insight into the nature of experience tells us that the various forms of suffering we experience can be brought to an end. But by now I REALLY, REALLY have to pee. photo by Marvin Moore

42 SHAMBHALA SUN MAY 2009 SHAMBHALA SUN MAY 2009 43 So I tell him, “This is a great secret, which I’ll tell you after a BUDD h a nat UR E look like ants, or your own breathlessness at standing so high short break.” above the ground. But it still wouldn’t communicate the depth With all the dignity I can summon, I get up off the chair where When you are living in darkness, why don’t you look for the light? and breadth of your experience. I’ve been sitting, slowly pass through rows of people bowing, and — The Dhammapada, translated by Eknath Easwaran Though buddhanature defies description, the Buddha did finally get to a bathroom. provide some clues in the way of signposts or maps that can help Now, peeing may not be anyone’s idea of an enlightening ex- In order to explain this more clearly I have to cheat a little bit, direct us toward that supremely inexpressible experience. One of perience, but I can tell you that once I empty my bladder, I recog- bringing up a subject that the Buddha never explicitly men- the ways in which he described it was in terms of three qualities: nize that the deep sense of relief I feel in that moment is a good tioned in his teachings of the first turning of the wheel. But as a boundless wisdom, which is the capacity to know anything and analogy for the third noble truth: that relief was with me all the number of my teachers have admitted, this subject is implied in everything—past, present, and future; infinite capability, which 1 time as what you might call a basic condition. I just didn’t recog- the first and second turnings. It isn’t as if he was holding back on consists of an unlimited power to raise ourselves and other beings nize it because it was temporarily obscured by all that water. But some great revelation that would only be passed on to the best from any condition of suffering; and immeasurable loving-kindness afterwards, I was able to recognize it and appreciate it. and brightest of his students. Rather, like a responsible teacher, and , a limitless sense of relatedness to all creatures, an The Buddha referred to this dilemma with a somewhat more he focused first of all on teaching basic principles before mov- open-heartedness toward others that serves as a motivation to cre- dignified analogy in which he compared this basic nature to the ing on to more advanced subjects. Ask any elementary school ate the conditions that enable all beings to flourish. sun. Though it’s always shining, the sun is often obscured by teacher about the practicality of teaching calculus to children Undoubtedly, there are many people who fervently believe in clouds. Yet we can only really see the clouds because the sun is who haven’t yet mastered the basics of addition, subtraction, di- the Buddha’s description and the possibility that, through study illuminating them. In the same way, our basic nature is always vision, or multiplication. and practice, they can realize a direct experience of unlimited present. It is, in fact, what allows us to discern even those things The subject is buddhanature—which doesn’t refer to the be- wisdom, capability, and compassion. There are probably many that obscure it: an insight that may be best understood by return- flections.T hey don’t alter the nature of that which reflects them. ph o havior or attitude of someone who walks around in colored others who think it’s just a bunch of nonsense. t ing to the question raised just before I left for the bathroom. The crystal ball is essentially colorless. os by li z robes, begging for food! Buddha is a Sanskrit term that might be Similarly, pure awareness in itself is always clear, capable of roughly translated as “one who is awake.” As a formal title, it usu- T WO T Y p e S O F AWA R e n e S S reflecting anything, even misconceptions about itself as limited ally refers to Siddhartha Gautama, the young man who achieved A MATTHE or conditioned. Just as the sun illuminates the clouds that ob- enlightenment twenty-five hundred years ago in Bodhgaya. The essence of every thought that arises is pristine awareness. scure it, pure awareness enables us to experience natural suffer- Buddhanature, however, is not a formal title. It’s not a charac-

—Pengar Jamphel Sangpo ing and the relentless drama of self-created suffering: me versus WS teristic exclusive to the historical Buddha or to Buddhist practi- Short Invocation of Vajradhara, translated by Maria Montenegro you, mine versus yours, this feeling versus that feeling, good ver- tioners. It’s not something created or imagined. It’s the heart or sus bad, pleasant versus unpleasant, or a desperate longing for essence inherent in all living beings: an unlimited potential to Actually there’s no great secret to understanding the difference change versus an equally frantic hope for permanence. do, see, hear, or experience anything. Because of buddhanature between pure awareness and conditioned awareness. They’re The truth of cessation is often described as a final release from we can learn, we can grow, we can change. We can become bud- both awareness, which might be roughly defined as a capacity fixation, craving, or “thirst.”H owever, while the term “cessation” dhas in our own right. to recognize, register, and in a sense, “catalogue” every moment seems to imply something different or better than our present Buddhanature can’t be described in terms of relative concepts.

of experience. experience, it is actually a matter of acknowledging the potential y B isso n It has to be experienced directly, and direct experience is impos- Pure awareness is like a ball of clear crystal—colorless in it- already inherent within us. sible to define in words. Imagine looking at a place so vast that self but capable of reflecting anything: your face, other people, Cessation—or relief from suffering—is possible because aware- it surpasses our ability to describe it—the Grand Canyon, for o by C a s e walls, furniture. If you moved it around a little, maybe you’d see ness is fundamentally clear and unconditioned. Fear, shame, guilt, t example. You could say that it’s big, that the stone walls on either different parts of the room and the size, shape, or position of greed, competitiveness, and so on are simply veils, perspectives in- o ph side are sort of red, and that the air is dry and smells faintly like the furniture might change. If you took it outside, you could see herited and reinforced by our cultures, our families, and personal cedar. But no matter how well you describe it, your description The view from the top of Taipei 101 trees, birds, flowers—even the sky! Whatever appears, though, experience. Suffering recedes, according to the third noble truth, can’t really encompass the experience of being in the presence of are only reflections.T hey don’t really exist inside the ball, nor do to the extent that we let go of the whole framework of grasping. something so vast. Or you could try describing the view from the Oddly enough, in many of the sutras, the Buddha seems to have they alter its essence in any way. We accomplish this, not by suppressing our desire, our aver- observatory of the Taipei 101, one of the world’s tallest buildings, enjoyed engaging in conversation with the people who doubted Now, suppose the crystal ball were wrapped in a piece of sions, our fixations, or trying to “think differently,” but rather hailed as one of the “seven wonders of the modern world.” You what he had to say. He was, after all, only one of many teachers colored silk. Everything you saw reflected in it—whether you by turning our awareness inward, examining the thoughts, emo- could talk about the panorama, the way the cars and people below traveling across India in the fourth century B.C.E.—a situation moved it around, carried it to different rooms, or took it out- tions, and sensations that trouble us, and beginning to notice similar to the one in which we find ourselves at present, in which side—would be shaded to some degree by the color of the silk. them—and perhaps even appreciate them—as expressions of 1 The Buddha’s first turning of the wheel of was from the perspective of radio, TV channels, and the Internet are flooded by teachers and That’s a fairly accurate description of conditioned awareness: a awareness itself. relative reality, and emphasized the importance of cause and effect. The second teachings of various persuasions. Unlike many of his contempo- and third turnings were from the perspective of ultimate reality. The second perspective colored by ignorance, desire, aversion, and the host Simply put, the cause of the various diseases we experience is turning emphasized emptiness and compassion, and the third turning presented raries, however, the Buddha didn’t try to convince people that of other obscurations. Yet these colored reflections are simply re- the cure. The mind that grasps is the mind that sets us free. the teachings on buddhanature. the method through which he found release from suffering was

44 SHAMBHALA SUN MAY 2009 SHAMBHALA SUN MAY 2009 45 the only true method. A common theme running through many At any given moment, you can choose to follow the chain of thoughts, emotions, and

of the sutras could be summarized in modern terms as, “This is ph o sensations that reinforce a perception of yourself as vulnerable and limited—or you can just what I did and this is what I recognized. Don’t believe any- t o by Ka r ma Lech o /te thing I say because I say so. Try it out for yourselves.” remember that your true nature is pure, unconditioned, and incapable of being harmed. He didn’t actively discourage people from considering what he’d learned and how he learned it. Rather, in his teachings on buddhanature, he presented his listeners with a kind of thought third noble truth. Whatever discomfort we feel—subtle, in- learned not only through my own experience, but the experiences of experiment, inviting them to discover within their own experi- tense, or somewhere in-between—subsides to the degree that the truly great masters who were my guides and teachers. ence the ways in which aspects of buddhanature emerge from we cut through our fixation upon a very limited, conditioned, We’re all buddhas. We just don’t recognize it. We are confined ga r time to time in our daily lives. He presented this experiment in and conditional view of ourselves and begin to identify with the in many ways to a limited view of ourselves and the world around terms of an analogy of a house in which a lamp has been lit and capability to experience anything at all. Eventually, it’s possible us through cultural conditioning, family upbringing, personal the shades or shutters have been drawn. The house represents to come to rest in buddhanature itself—the way, for instance, experience, and the basic biological predisposition toward mak- the seemingly solid perspective of physical, mental, and emo- got all this money from the stock market, then it went back to a bird might rest in coming home to its nest. At that point, suf- ing distinctions and measuring present experience and future tional conditioning. The lamp represents our buddhanature. No the stock market, and now it’s coming back. Conditions change, fering ends. There is nothing to fear, nothing to resist. Not even hopes and fears against a neuronal warehouse of memories. matter how tightly the shades and shutters are drawn, inevitably but I’m still here. I can make decisions. So maybe I was living in a death can trouble you. Once you commit yourself to developing an awareness of your a bit of the light from inside the house shines through. big house one year and sleeping on a friend’s couch the next, but buddhanature, you’ll inevitably start to see changes in your day-to- Inside, the light from the lamp provides the clarity to distin- that doesn’t change the fact that I can choose how to think about day experience. Things that used to trouble you gradually lose their guish between, say, a chair, a bed, or a carpet. As it peeks through myself and all the stuff happening around me. I consider myself power to upset you. You’ll become intuitively wiser, more relaxed, the shades or shutters we may experience the light of wisdom very fortunate, in fact. Some people aren’t capable of choosing and more openhearted. You’ll begin to recognize obstacles as oppor- sometimes as intuition, what some people describe as a “gut level” and some people don’t recognize that they can choose. I guess tunities for further growth. And as your illusory sense of limitation feeling about a person, situation, or event. I’m lucky because I fall into the category of people who are able and vulnerability gradually fades away, you’ll discover deep within Loving-kindness and compassion shine through the shutters to recognize their capacity for choice.” yourself the true grandeur of who and what you are. in those moments when we spontaneously give aid or comfort to I’ve heard similar remarks from people who are coping with Best of all, as you start to see your own potential, you’ll also someone, not out of self-interest or thinking we might get some- chronic illness, either in themselves, their parents, their children, begin to recognize it in everyone around you. Buddhanature is

thing in return, but just because it seems the right thing to do. other family members, or friends. One man I met recently in u not a special quality available to a privileged few. The true mark It may be something as simple as offering people a shoulder to North America, for instance, spoke at length about maintaining of recognizing your buddhanature is to realize how ordinary it cry on when they’re in pain or helping someone cross the street, his job and his relationship with his wife and children while con- really is—the ability to see that every living creature shares it, or it may involve a longer-term commitment, like sitting by the tinuing to visit his father who was suffering from Alzheimer’s though not everyone recognizes it in him- or herself. So instead bedside of someone ill or dying. We’ve all heard, too, of extreme disease. “Of course it’s hard to balance all these things,” he said. of closing your heart to people who yell at you or act in some instances in which someone, without even thinking about the “But it’s what I do. I don’t see any other way.” other harmful way, you find yourself becoming more open. You

risk to his or her own life, jumps into a river to save a stranger Such a simple statement, but how refreshing! Though he’d o by Mi chae l God ena recognize that they aren’t “jerks,” but are people who, like you,

t who is drowning. never attended a Buddhist teaching before, had never studied the want to be happy and peaceful. They’re only acting like jerks o ph Capability often manifests in the way in which we survive dif- literature, and didn’t necessarily identify himself as Buddhist, his because they haven’t recognized their true nature and are over- ficult events. For example, a long-time Buddhist practitioner I description of his life and the way he approached it represented a whelmed by sensations of vulnerability and fear. met recently had invested heavily in the stock market back in the spontaneous expression of all three aspects of buddhanature: the J OYFUL WISDO M Your practice can begin with the simple aspiration to do better, 1990s, and when the market fell later in the decade, he lost every- wisdom to see the depth and breadth of his situation, the capa- to approach all of your activities with a greater sense of aware- thing. Many of his friends and partners had also lost a great deal bility to choose how to interpret and act on what he saw, and the You will succeed if you persevere; and you will find a joy in over- ness and insight, and to open your heart more deeply toward of money, and some of them went a little crazy. Some lost con- spontaneous attitude of loving-kindness and compassion. coming obstacles. —Helen Keller others. Motivation is the single most important factor in deter- fidence in themselves and their ability to make decisions; some As I listened to him, it occurred to me that these three char- mining whether your experience is conditioned by suffering or fell into deep depression; others, like the people who lost money acteristics of buddhanature can be summed up in a single word: Within our perceived weaknesses and imperfections lies the key to by peace. Wisdom and compassion actually develop at the same during the stock market crash of 1929, jumped out of windows. courage—specifically the courage to be, just as we are, right here, realizing our true strength. By facing our disturbing emotions and pace. The more attentive you become, the easier you’ll find it to But he didn’t lose his mind, his confidence, or fall into depres- right now, with all our doubts and uncertainties. Facing experience the problems that occur in our lives, we discover an experience of be compassionate. And the more you open your heart to others, sion. Slowly, slowly, he began investing again and built up a new, directly opens us to the possibility of recognizing that whatever well-being that extends outward as well as inward. Had I not faced the wiser and more attentive you become in all your activities. solid financial base. we experience—love, loneliness, hate, jealousy, joy, greed, grief, the panic and anxiety I felt through most of my youth, I would not At any given moment, you can choose to follow the chain of Seeing his apparent calm in the face of such a terrific down- and so on—is, in essence, an expression of the fundamentally be in the position I find myself today. I would never have found the thoughts, emotions, and sensations that reinforce a perception turn of events, a number of his friends and associates asked him unlimited potential of our buddhanature. courage or the strength to get on a plane, travel around the world, of yourself as vulnerable and limited—or you can remember how he was able to retain his equanimity. “Well,” he replied, “I This principle is implied in the “positive prognosis” of the and sit before an audience of strangers passing on the wisdom I’d that your true nature is pure, unconditioned, and incapable of

46 SHAMBHALA SUN MAY 2009 SHAMBHALA SUN MAY 2009 47 being harmed. You can remain in the sleep of ignorance or re- realm. You don’t know whether to go back to what was familiar the discomfort of being ruled by them. I can’t promise you that erwise, meditation becomes a chore. You’ll end up thinking, “Oh member that you are and always have been awake. Either way, but frightening or to forge ahead toward what may be frighten- it will always be pleasant simply to rest in the awareness of your no, it’s 7:15. I have to sit down and cultivate awareness”. No one you’re still expressing the unlimited nature of your true being. ing simply because it’s unfamiliar. thoughts, feelings, and sensations—and to recognize them as in- ever progresses that way. On the other hand, if you think you Ignorance, vulnerability, fear, anger, and desire are expressions In a sense, the uncertainty surrounding the choice to recog- teractive creations of your own mind and body. In fact, I can could go on for another minute or two, then go on. You may of the infinite potential of your buddhanature. There’s nothing nize your full potential is similar to what several of my students pretty much guarantee that looking at yourself this way will be, be surprised by what you learn. You might discover a particular inherently wrong or right with making such choices. The fruit of have told me about ending an abusive relationship: there’s a cer- at times, extremely unpleasant. thought or feeling behind your resistance that you didn’t want to Buddhist practice is simply the recognition that these and other tain reluctance or sense of failure associated with letting go of But the same can be said about beginning anything new, wheth- acknowledge. Or you may simply find that you can actually rest mental afflictions are nothing more or less than choices available the relationship. er it’s going to the gym, starting a job, or beginning a diet. The first your mind longer than you thought you could. That discovery to us because our real nature is infinite in scope. The primary difference between severing an abusive relation- few months are always difficult. It’s hard to learn all the skills you alone can give you greater confidence in yourself. We choose ignorance because we can. We choose awareness ship and entering the path of Buddhist practice is that when you need to master a job; it’s hard to motivate yourself to exercise; and But the best part of all is that no matter how long you practice, because we can. Samsara and nirvana are simply different points enter the path of Buddhist practice you’re ending an abusive it’s hard to eat healthfully every day. But after a while the difficul- or what method you use, every technique of Buddhist medita- of view based on the choices we make in how to examine and un- relationship with yourself. When you choose to recognize your ties subside; you start to feel a sense of pleasure or accomplish- tion ultimately generates compassion. Whenever you look at derstand our experience. There’s nothing magical about nirvana true potential, you gradually begin to find yourself belittling ment, and your entire sense of self begins to change. your mind, you can’t help but recognize your similarity to those and nothing bad or wrong about samsara. If you’re determined to yourself less frequently, your opinion of yourself becomes more Meditation works the same way. For the first few days you around you. When you see your own desire to be happy, you think of yourself as limited, fearful, vulnerable, or scarred by past positive and wholesome, and your sense of confidence and sheer might feel very good, but after a week or so, practice becomes a can’t avoid seeing the same desire in others. And when you look experience, know only that you have chosen to do so. The oppor- joy at being alive increases. At the same time, you begin to recog- trial. You can’t find the time, sitting is uncomfortable, you can’t clearly at your own fear, anger, or aversion, you can’t help but see tunity to experience yourself differently is always available. nize that everyone around you has the same potential, whether focus, or you just get tired. You hit a wall, as runners do when that everyone around you feels the same fear, anger, and aver- In essence, the Buddhist path offers a choice between familiar- they know it or not. Instead of dealing with them as threats or they try to add an extra half mile to their exercise. The body says, sion. This is wisdom—not in the sense of book learning, but in ity and practicality. There is, without question, a certain comfort adversaries, you’ll find yourself able to recognize and empathize “I can’t,” while the mind says, “I should.” Neither voice is particu- the awakening of the heart, the recognition of our connection to and stability in maintaining familiar patterns of thought and with their fear and unhappiness. You’ll spontaneously respond larly pleasant; in fact, they’re both a bit demanding. others, and the road to joy. ♦ behavior. Stepping outside that zone of comfort and familiarity to them in ways that emphasize solutions rather than problems. Buddhism is often referred to as the “middle way” because Reprinted from Joyful Wisdom: Embracing Change and Finding Freedom, by necessarily involves moving into a realm of unfamiliar experi- Ultimately, joyful wisdom comes down to choosing between it offers a third option. If you just can’t focus on a sound or a Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche. © 2009 by Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche. Published by ence that may seem really scary, an uncomfortable in-between the discomfort of becoming aware of your mental afflictions and candle flame for one second longer, then by all means stop. Oth- Harmony Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

Joyful Son Mingyur Rinpoche comes from an extraordinary family devoted to the teachings known as “the Great Perfection.” Barry Boyce has their story.

The young Tibetan teacher Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche study with many of the masters who emerged from the great helped to resolve his problem as a young man with panic at- comes from an illustrious family of masters who have been influ- renaissance of Tibetan dharma that occurred in the late nine- tacks. His teaching has been well-received by the increasing ential in bringing the profound teachings known as to teenth century. He was steeped in two prominent meditation numbers of researchers who are seeking to verify the results of the world. His father, Urgyen Rinpoche (1920-1996), was traditions of Buddhism—the Dzogchen teachings of meditation in Western scientific terms. renowned as one of the great Dzogchen masters of the twentieth the school and the practices of the Three of Mingyur Rinpoche’s brothers are also well-known century, and four of Tulku Urgyen’s sons, including Mingyur tradition—and passed these teachings on to his children, as well Dzogchen teachers. The eldest, Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche, has Rinpoche, are themselves well-known teachers with significant as to many teachers and students who spent time with him in his been a highly influential teacher for the past twenty-five years. followings in the West. hermitage above the Valley. His books include Union of Mahamudra and Dzogchen and Often translated as “the Great Perfection,” Dzogchen presents presented the highest teachings of Dzogchen with lyrical sim- Present Fresh Wakefulness. Drubwang has a

the view that we all abide in a natural state of pure awareness, plicity, and his books Rainbow Painting and As It Is, as well as the u seat in that is home to a , international medi- free from extremes, and that suffering and liberation alike, both posthumous book of his memoirs, Blazing Splendor, are brilliant tation center, and translation committee. From his other seat, samsara and nirvana, are merely an “illusory display.” This natu- presentations of the flavor of Dzogchen mind. in Crestone, Colorado, Tsoknyi Rinpoche travels extensively in ral state is often likened to a pure, vast blue sky out of which ap- Born in 1975, Mingyur Rinpoche is the youngest of Tulku the West presenting teachings in a style similar to his father’s, pearances emerge only to dissolve. Dzogchen’s rigorous practices Urgyen’s spiritual heirs. Starting in 1984, he studied closely with but in colloquial English. He is author of Carefree Dignity and are geared toward continually letting go of whatever occurs in his father at his hermitage, as well as with other masters of both Fearless Simplicity. Tsikey Chokling Rinpoche, author of Lotus

body and mind that may temporarily obscure this natural state. the Kagyu and Nyingma schools. In his best-selling first book, o by Mi chae l God ena Ocean, is considered the of the Tibetan master t Mingyur Rinpoche’s father, Tulku Urgyen, lived in for The Joy of Living: Unlocking the Secret and Science of Happiness, who discovered the secret teachings that formed the basis for o ph thirty-nine years before escaping to Nepal after the Chinese in- he presented Buddhist teachings in the framework of Western much of Tulku Urgyen’s teaching. ♦ Mingyur Rinpoche at age seven, with Tsoknyi Rinpoche and their father, vasion of Tibet. In his home country, he had been privileged to medicine and neuroscience, and related how meditation had Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche.

48 SHAMBHALA SUN MAY 2009 SHAMBHALA SUN MAY 2009 49